Keep in mind being a person who identifies within the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender community, has it’s flaws, one way or the other.

The biggest stressor when being with someone who is LGBT is not knowing the backlash you might receive for wanting to be with someone of the same sex or wanting to be with someone who has a different gender identity that is beyond the male and female binary.

There are endless possibilities when coming out, but most media portray coming out in a negative light. In most media, people are aware that parents are usually unaccepting of the idea that their child is not a heterosexual or that they aren’t cisgender. It has always been frowned upon; making coming out that much harder to do for folks.

As a young and curious 17-year-old, I could have never imagined the difficult circumstances of Oct. 11, 2013. Many of us may not remember what they did on this exact day, but for me this day radiates with much significance. In 2013, I came out as transgender to my family and friends. However, I didn’t have all of the best luck in the world.

My father didn’t accept me for who I was and that really caused a lot of mental damage. A lot of people accepted me, but there were the few that didn’t. All in all, the backlash that I received from my father did alter my life quite a bit, but I had to realize that not everyone is going to support me, even if it is my own family. I then started pursuing gender therapy. It was very thorough and helped me have an eye-opening realization.

Since then, I have began to understand who I was. In 2014, I began pursuing mental health therapy, I then started to learn more about myself and finally understood who I was.

As of now, I have come out to a few family members and friends. Luckily, a majority of them understood what I was saying and accepted me for who I was. I am a person who identifies as Gender

Non-Conforming and is bisexual. Therapy truly helped me figure out who I was, but also, it helped me realize how easy things could go if they are said right and things are communicated more clearly.

Unfortunately, not everyone has access to therapy or has a support system, but everyone does have access to find a trustworthy person. In order to be comfortable with one’s self, they must be able to confide in someone who truly knows and understands what they are going through.

Also, you must know that the person isn’t going to judge or have any negative comments towards your true self. It is important to surround yourself with nothing but good vibes because if you don’t, you will continue to want to hide yourself instead of coming to terms and being able to finally just let it out and be who you want to be.

When you start preparing to come out, it is hard on the sanity that you possess. You need to pick an appropriate time to come out because if your family is going through death, divorce, bickering and so on and so forth, it probably wouldn’t be the best time to spring your sexuality or gender identity on them.

You have to make sure everyone who you want to know at the time is willing to get together, so you can just let it out at once. You don’t want to continue sounding like a broken record when repeating yourself to the countless family members and friends. Always try to have a positive attitude when telling your relatives and friends. Even if you might be afraid of the outcome. But just know, even at the end of the day, there is always someone there to help you get through things if they don’t always rule in the favor that we would like them to.

Keep yourself happy, health and loved because at the end of the day that is what truly matters.

If you are fortunate and are accepted by your family and friends, then HELL YEAH; even if you aren’t, I am proud of your courage and it does get better with time.

There is always going to be someone out there that will always accept and love you for who you are! Stay strong!